Related

The Fort Worth’s paint job cost $1.41 million. That’s about 5 percent or 10 percent more than a standard haze-gray look thanks to the extra hours needed, according to a new Navy estimate.

The Freedom, a prototype littoral ship and the first to receive a camouflage color scheme, is deployed to Singapore. The ship left San Diego March 1. Crews will likely come back with lessons learned about the unusual look.

The Fort Worth arrived in San Diego in October after leaving the shipyard.

Since then, crews have been prepping for final contract trials, when Navy inspectors test whether major systems are up to specification. That examination was held in April and the ship passed.

Following this dry-dock period, the Fort Worth will work toward sea trials in August.

Kim, the skipper, said they’ll be looking at gas mileage.

The Fort Worth has gas-turbine engines for when it wants to go fast, more than 40 knots. But they are also gas guzzlers. He’ll be looking at how far and fast the ship can go on its slower diesel engines.

The difference may mean hundreds of extra miles before refueling, Kim said. “Short legs,” or a frequent need to refuel, has been one of many criticisms of this version of the littoral line.

The ship will also test out the Navy’s first-generation drone helicopter, the Fire Scout MQ-8B.

The littoral line is a cornerstone of the Navy’s plan to deploy unmanned helicopters at sea. The stated plan is for each littoral ship to sail with two Fire Scouts and one traditional, manned MH-60 Seahawk helicopter.

The Fort Worth will be the first littoral ship to work with the Fire Scout, though the unmanned crafts, designed in Rancho Bernardo by Northrop Grumman, have been tested on a handful of other ships.

As the ship conducts those drills later this summer, San Diegans will get their first chance to see the Fort Worth’s new look in action.

“Or not see us,” Kim said, laughing, referring to the paint job’s potential for masking the ship. “Try to see us.”